A how-to-guide in navigating potholes!
Driving on South African roads, especially in certain areas of the country, can feel like you are trying to navigate a minefield. Even the most experienced drivers don’t stand a chance on our eroded roads. Not only do potholes pose potential danger to you, they can also seriously harm your tyres.
They are often hard to see and so are difficult to avoid, especially at night or when driving in heavy traffic which doesn’t allow you to swerve out of the way.
Tiger Wheel & Tyre put together a few pothole safety tips to help avoid them:
- Remember that properly inflated tyres will hold up better against potholes than tyres that are under inflated
- Other than simply being good driving practice, leaving enough room between you and the car in front of you can be critical in avoiding potholes
- If you can’t avoid a pothole altogether make sure you slow down before you hit it and never brake directly over a pothole as this can actually cause more damage than speeding over it
- In the case where you have to drive directly over a pothole make sure to hold the steering wheel firmly to avoid losing control
- Watch out for innocent looking puddles, these are often potholes in disguise
What is the damage a pothole can cause?
- Is your car pulling to the left or right, is your alignment is off?
- Uneven tyre wear?
- Low tyre pressure?
- Bulges, tears or blisters on sidewall of your tyre?
- Indents in the wheel rim?
Potholes should be reported to local municipalities to get repaired and if you have any of the above symptoms or suspect you have tyre damage visit your nearest Tiger Wheel & tyre to have your tyres checked.